Subscribers to Penn State's PSUTXT emergency messaging system may see an increase in the number of text and email alerts they receive in the coming months. In an effort to more closely match the guidelines of the federal Clery Act, police plan to issue all timely warnings via PSUTXT.

To ensure that Penn State's approach to safety, public health and environmental protection is uniform, the University has multiple safety and administrative policies in place, and maintains a variety of training programs at campuses across the Commonwealth, according to Ford Stryker, associate vice president for the Office of Physical Plant.

Police working the Penn State football game this past Saturday were busier than they have been all season, but they were no busier than they expected to be, according to Penn State Police Chief Tyrone Parham.

On Oct. 17, 2012, Penn State and the Centre Region Council of Governments conducted an exercise of the combined Emergency Operations Center. The exercise brought together representatives from both the University and local government to work through a series of tasks designed to test the abilities of the responders and the functionality of the facility in a combined, operational environment. During this time, Penn State tested and utilized the PSUTXT emergency messaging system to alert the University Park campus. The test message was part of the overall exercise for alerting students, University employees and the surrounding community to the touchdown of a fictional tornado.

Penn State and the Centre Region Office of Emergency Management will conduct a joint emergency operations exercise during the day on Wednesday, Oct. 17. The exercise will test the readiness of regional and University emergency operations staff to respond should a major disaster occur.

As part of the exercise, Penn State's PSUTXT emergency alert system will be tested. Those who have signed up for alerts from Penn State's University Park campus will receive a test message during the drill. Also, across the Centre Region, residents will receive a test notification by telephone, radio and/or television. Residents enrolled in the CodeRED notification program also will receive notification by cell phone. Social media test alerts will be distributed on the Centre Region's Facebook and Twitter accounts, as well.

Through a partnership with the nonprofit Clery Center for Security on Campus (CCSOC), Penn State safety and security personnel, as well as others, will participate in state-of-the-art Clery Act compliance training on June 20 and 21 on the University Park campus. Enacted in 1990, the Clery Act is a federal law that requires colleges and universities in the United States to maintain precise records and openly report criminal activity on campus. Each year, the Clery Center trains hundreds of school officials and administrators to comply with the letter of the law and embrace the spirit of safety it is intended to support.